Mindblown: a blog about philosophy.
-
‘All Women, Children, Elderly’ Evacuated From Azovstal: Kyiv
Ukraine said Saturday that all women, children, and elderly civilians were evacuated from the Azovstal steel plant in the destroyed port city of Mariupol where Ukrainian forces are holding out against Russian troops. “The President’s order has been carried out: all women, children and the elderly have been evacuated from Azovstal. This part of the…
-
Ukraine Says Sank Russian Landing Craft at Snake Island
Kyiv said Saturday it has destroyed another Russian warship near the Black Sea’s Snake Island, where Ukrainian forces were awarded for heroism after rebuffing Russian demands to surrender. Ukraine’s defense ministry said in a statement an armed drone had destroyed a Serna-class landing craft and a missile defense system at the small island under Russian…
-
Z-symbols, Fewer Tanks and No Guests: Russia Prepares to Mark Victory Day as Ukraine War Rages
Russia will mark Monday the Soviet Union’s victory over Nazism amid expectations that ongoing fighting in Ukraine will cast a long shadow over the popular event. In particular, the set piece military parade on Moscow’s Red Square will see significantly fewer soldiers and equipment compared to last year, which experts have linked to significant losses…
-
Two Hundred Homes Ablaze, Deaths in Siberia Fires: Authorities
Several fires have broken out in southern Siberia, affecting about 200 buildings and causing at least five deaths, local authorities said on Saturday, adding they had placed the area under a state of emergency. The fires in the Krasnoyarsk region covered more than 16 zones, spreading to around 200 buildings, several sawmills and a children’s…
-
High Death Toll of Russian Generals in Ukraine a Blow to Military Capability
In a ceremony deserving of his rank, Russian Major General Vladimir Frolov was laid to rest in St. Petersburg’s Serafimovskoe Cemetery, where tens of thousands of victims of World War II are buried. “Today we say goodbye to a true hero. Vladimir Petrovich Frolov died a heroic death in battle with Ukrainian nationalists. He sacrificed…
-
Russia To Stay in Southern Ukraine ‘Forever’ – Senior Lawmaker
A senior official from the Russian parliament said Friday that Russia will remain in southern Ukraine “forever,” speaking on a visit to the Moscow-controlled city of Kherson. “Russia is here forever. There should be no doubt about this. There will be no return to the past,” Andrey Turchak said, according to a statement from the…
-
Russia Arrests Opposition Journalist in Absentia for Mariupol Hospital Bombing ‘Fakes’
A prominent Russian opposition journalist has been arrested in absentia on charges of publishing “fake” news about the Russian military’s air strike on a maternity hospital in southern Ukraine, Interfax reported Friday. Alexander Nevzorov, a former MP who has worked with independent media outlets like Dozhd and Ekho Moskvy, is one of the dozens of Russians…
-
Moscow Allows Sanction-Busting Imports
Russia on Friday allowed for hundreds of categories of goods to be imported without the agreement of the intellectual property owner in order to bypass restrictions imposed over the Ukraine conflict. Among the list published by the Industry and Commerce Ministry are Apple and Samsung smartphones, major car brands, game consoles, and spare parts used…
-
Pentagon Denies Helping Ukraine Sink Moskva
The Pentagon on Friday denied reports that it helped Ukrainian forces sink the Russian warship Moskva in the Black Sea last month in a stunning setback for Moscow’s invasion. “We did not provide Ukraine with specific targeting information for the Moskva,” Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said in a statement. Kirby said the U.S. had “no…
-
Russian Firms Seek ‘Mobilization Experts’ as Officials Deny Mass Recruitment Plans – Reports
Russian state enterprises with seemingly little affiliation to the military are recruiting “mobilization and wartime experts,” the independent Sota news outlet has reported. The report comes as top Russian officials continue to deny speculation that the Kremlin plans to announce a full mobilization as soon as May 9, when Russia celebrates the Victory Day holiday.…
-
Belarus Jails Activist’s Russian Girlfriend for 6 Years
A Belarusian court has sentenced student Sofia Sapega, the Russian girlfriend of a Belarusian dissident journalist, to six years in prison following a closed trial, Belarus’ Viasna human rights group said Friday. Sapega and her boyfriend, Roman Protasevich, were on a Ryanair flight from Athens to Vilnius in May 2021 when Belarusian authorities forcibly diverted…
-
Nearly 4M Russians Left Russia in Early 2022 – FSB
More than 3.8 million Russians have left the country in the first three months of 2022, according to data from Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) published this week. A total of 3,880,679 Russians traveled for work, business, tourism and private reasons between January and March. Former Soviet countries saw significant spikes in arrivals after Russia…
-
Separatists Take Down Ukrainian Road Signs in Mariupol
Moscow-backed separatists in southeastern Ukraine said they had taken down traffic signs spelling out the name of the besieged city of Mariupol in Ukrainian and English and replaced them with Russian ones. “Updated road signs have been set up at the entrance to Mariupol,” the transportation ministry of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic said in…
-
U.S. Exports to Russia Fall to 20-Year Low
U.S. exports to Russia dropped to a 20-year low in March as Washington hit Moscow with a series of punishing economic sanctions over its invasion of Ukraine, according to the latest U.S. Census Bureau data. U.S. exports to Russia dropped from $497.5 million in February to $101.1 million in March, according to the U.S. Bureau…
-
Elderly Ukrainian Suggests Russia Co-opted Her as Pro-War Symbol
An elderly Ukrainian woman who became a symbol of support for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has been located in a Ukrainian hospital and filmed suggesting that her image was co-opted by Russian officials and state-owned media. The pensioner known as “granny Anya” was last month caught on camera mistakenly greeting Ukrainian soldiers with a Soviet flag. The…
-
U.S. Intel Helped Ukraine Sink Russia’s Moskva Cruiser – Reports
U.S. intelligence helped Ukraine sink Russia’s Moskva missile cruiser last month, NBC News reported Thursday as the Pentagon pushed back on a previous report saying U.S. intelligence has allowed Kyiv to kill Russian generals. Ukrainian forces targeted the Moskva on April 13 after asking the U.S. to help identify and confirm its location in the…
-
Russian Army Recruitment Office Attacked With Molotov Cocktails
Two men are on the run after attacking a conscription office in western Siberia with Molotov cocktails. In a dramatic video shared by news outlet Baza on Thursday, the pair are seen throwing at least seven Molotovs through the window of a recruitment office in the city of Nizhnevartovsk. In the clip, flames can be…
-
Putin Apologized for Russia Hitler Claims – Israel PM’s Office
Israel’s Prime Minister Naftali Bennett said Thursday that Russian leader Vladimir Putin has apologized for remarks made by Moscow’s top diplomat, Sergei Lavrov, who claimed Adolf Hitler may have had “Jewish blood.” The comments had sparked outrage in the Jewish state. “The Prime Minister accepted President Putin’s apology for Lavrov’s remarks and thanked him for…
-
Moscow Says Western Aid Cannot Prevent Russian Victory in Ukraine
Russia on Thursday said Western aid to Kyiv had slowed its offensive in Ukraine but would not thwart its victory, as conflicting reports emerged about efforts to rescue civilians from a besieged steel plant in the devastated city of Mariupol. Nearly 10 weeks into a war that has left thousands of people dead, flattened Ukrainian…
-
Putin Backs ‘Objective’ Russian Wikipedia Alternative
Russia should consider developing a domestic alternative to Wikipedia, President Vladimir Putin said Thursday, questioning the quality of information published in the online encyclopedia. “Objective, useful, thought-through, but also beautifully and masterfully presented information is in high demand because it is impossible to use Wikipedia alone,” Putin said during a meeting with Maxim Dreval, CEO…
-
Pro-Kremlin Anchor Launches Bot for Russians to Snitch on Anti-War Neighbors
Pro-Kremlin TV host Vladimir Solovyov has launched a digital bot to help Russians report anti-war activity. Would-be informers in Russia’s fourth-largest city Yekaterinburg can use a bot linked to Solovyov’s local Telegram channel, UralLive, to fill in a form on supposed opposition sentiment. “If you have information about anti-Russian activities in the Urals, write about…
-
In Photos: Russia’s Victory Parade Rehearsals in Full Swing
Rehearsals are underway for Russia’s upcoming Victory Day celebrations, when the country marks the anniversary of the Soviet Union’s 1945 defeat of the Nazis with a massive military parade on Red Square. May 9 is one of Russia’s most significant holidays, as many Russians are related to someone who was killed during World War II.…
-
The Turkish specialists evaluated the personnel’s training at the Novovoronezh NPP
Representatives of the Turkish Nuclear Regulatory Agency (NDK) visited Novovoronezh NPP. Turkish regulator employees were observers during the knowledge assessment that was conducted by the Federal Environmental Industrial and Nuclear Supervision service of Russia (Rostechnadzor) for the critical personnel of Novovoronezh NPP – MCR operators receiving permission to work. Representatives of NDK visited power unit…
-
Russia’s War in Ukraine Is ‘Dragging On,’ Belarus Leader Admits
Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko has said he didn’t anticipate the war in Ukraine would “drag on this way,” over two months after close ally Russia invaded its pro-Western neighbor that also shares a border with Belarus. Analysts have said Russia’s leadership aimed to swiftly crush Ukraine’s military and take the capital Kyiv in the days…
-
Meeting between Director General of ROSATOM Alexey Likhachev and Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade of Hungary Péter Szijjártó took place in Istanbul
On 5 May 2022, a working meeting took place in Istanbul between Director General of ROSATOM Alexey Likhachev and Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade of Hungary Péter Szijjártó. Current issues relating to the project to construct the Paks-2 nuclear power plant were discussed at the meeting, as well as other ROSATOM projects in Hungary.…
-
Blue, Yellow and Green Make an Anti-War Poster Go Viral
Harry Gray, a 26-year-old British cycling campaigner and clothing designer in Salford, Manchester didn’t anticipate that his poster would go viral. The poster has a simple message: Fight Putin / Ride a Bike. The war in Ukraine has shone a light on much of the world’s reliance on Russian gas, which accounts for some 40%…
-
Russian Car Factory Gives Farmland to Furloughed Workers
A Russian car plant is handing out farmland to workers facing furlough after Western automakers left Russia over Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine. The Avtotor factory, based in Russia’s western enclave of Kaliningrad, has earmarked 300 hectares (740 acres) for its garden giveaway. Avtotor said that giving land so that workers could grow their own produce…
-
Western Arms to Ukraine Preventing ‘Quick’ End to Conflict: Kremlin
The Kremlin on Thursday accused the West of preventing a “quick” end to Russia’s military campaign in Ukraine by supplying weapons to the pro-Western country. Asked about a New York Times report that U.S. intelligence helped Ukraine kill a number of Russian generals, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said: “The United States, Britain, NATO as a…
-
Top Kremlin Official Unveils Pro-War Statue in Ukraine’s Mariupol
Russian President Vladimir Putin’s deputy chief of staff has unveiled a statue symbolizing support for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in the occupied city of Mariupol. Sergei Kiriyenko gave a speech alongside the monument, which depicts an elderly Ukrainian woman holding a Soviet flag, on the city’s Leninsky Komsomol Square. The pensioner, known as babushka Anya,…
-
Russia Simulates Nuclear Strikes Near EU
Russia said Wednesday its forces had carried out simulated nuclear missile strikes in the western enclave of Kaliningrad on the border with the European Union. The announcement came on the 70th day of Moscow’s military action in the pro-Western country, with thousands killed and more than 13 million displaced. After sending troops to Ukraine in…
-
Annexed Crimea Announces End of Ukrainian Blockade
Officials in Russian-controlled Crimea said Thursday they have ended an eight-year Ukrainian blockade of the peninsula and begun restoring traffic via formerly Ukraine-held territory. Ukraine suspended train and bus services to Crimea and imposed a blockade on freight shipments in the months after Russia seized it from Kyiv in 2014. “The transportation blockade of Crimea…
-
Russian Ceasefire to Begin at Besieged Mariupol Steel Plant
A Russian-announced ceasefire was due to begin Thursday at the besieged Azovstal steel plant in the devastated Ukrainian city of Mariupol to allow civilians to flee. The three-day halt in Russia’s attack on the Azovstal steelworks was announced as EU member states debated a proposed ban on Russian oil, the bloc’s toughest move yet over…
-
Russian Generals Killed in Ukraine With Help of U.S. Intelligence – NYT
U.S. intelligence has helped Ukraine kill some of the 12 Russian generals who died on the frontlines of the Russia-Ukraine war, The New York Times reported late Wednesday. Real-time U.S. battlefield intelligence reportedly included locations of the Russian military’s mobile headquarters and anticipated troop movements, according to unnamed U.S. officials. The officials cited by the…
-
ROSATOM Director General, IAEA Director General Hold Regular Working Meeting
On May 4, 2022, Istanbul hosted another working meeting between Alexey Likhachev, the ROSATOM Director General, and Rafael Mariano Grossi, the IAEA Director General. The officials reviewed the entire agenda of the Russia-IAEA working relationship. In particular, the parties discussed in detail the matter of ensuring safety of nuclear facilities in Ukraine under current complicated…
-
Up to 600 Dead in Mariupol Theater Airstrike — Investigation
As many as 600 people could have been killed when the Mariupol theater sheltering hundreds of civilians was shelled by Russian forces in March, a new investigation by the Associated Press (AP) reported Wednesday. The Donetsk Academic Regional Drama Theater was hit by a Russian air strike on March 16, killing an unknown number of…
-
Russia Violates Finnish Airspace as Helsinki Mulls NATO
A Russian army helicopter violated Finland’s airspace on Wednesday, the Finnish defense ministry said, as the country mulls an increasingly likely NATO membership bid. “The aircraft type is a Mi-17 helicopter and the depth of the suspected violation is about four to five kilometers”, a ministry spokesman told AFP. This is the second Russian airspace…
-
Uptick in Combat Missions Signals Changing Role for Russia’s Air Force in Ukraine
A spate of airstrikes by Russian combat jets in eastern Ukraine last week was a sign that Russia’s Air Force may be changing tack after failing to achieve aerial superiority over Ukraine, analysts told The Moscow Times. Russian pilots have largely taken a risk-averse approach to air combat in the two-month war, choosing to attack…
-
Explainer: How a Ukrainian Pensioner Became a Pro-War Symbol in Russia
An elderly Ukrainian woman has become a symbol of support for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine after the pensioner mistakenly greeted Ukrainian soldiers with a Soviet banner. Her viral popularity comes in the run-up to Russia’s May 9 holiday Victory Day, when nostalgia for the Soviet Union and its defeat of Nazi Germany in World War…
-
Pro-Kremlin Spin Doctor Solovyov Boasts of Mariupol Visit
Pro-Kremlin television host Vladimir Solovyov visited the besieged Ukrainian port city of Mariupol, he said in a YouTube broadcast Tuesday. Solovyov was pictured at a metallurgical plant in Mariupol alongside Denis Pushilin, the head of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic (DNR). In the photo, the state television anchor can be seen dressed in military fatigues…
-
EU Targets Russian Oil, Patriarch in New Sanctions
The European Union’s executive unveiled Wednesday plans for a gradual ban on Russian oil imports as part of a raft of new sanctions to punish Moscow for invading Ukraine. The proposed measures include moves against Russia’s biggest bank and the targeting of Patriarch Kirill, the head of the Russian Orthodox Church. If approved, the oil…
-
Ex-Belarus Leader Who Helped Dissolve Soviet Union Dies Aged 87
Stanislav Shushkevich, the first leader of independent Belarus who played a key role in the dissolution of the Soviet Union, died Wednesday at age 87. Shushkevich’s wife told journalists her husband passed away in the Belarusian capital of Minsk as a result of Covid-19 complications. He was placed in intensive care last month. “We hope…
-
Belarus Launches ‘Surprise’ Military Maneuvers
Belarus, a Moscow ally that shares a border with Ukraine, launched “surprise” military maneuvers on Wednesday, to test the reactive capacity of its army, its defense ministry said. Belarus military units were testing their capacity to “go on the alert, move to predetermined zones and undertake combat training,” the ministry said in a statement. “The…
-
South Ukraine Shows Signs Russia Has Come to Stay
A Russian military plane was flying in the skies over Berdyansk, a city in southern Ukraine, but no one took much notice. “Nothing to worry about,” said an older woman sitting on a bench in a small square on a sunny weekend afternoon. “It’s one of ours.” Russian forces took control of this port city…
-
Russia Sees Fewer Ukrainian Refugees Than Officials Expected
Russia has spent one-tenth of its expected budget on Ukrainian refugees as some emergency accommodation sites remain empty, according to public procurement data and interviews with officials. “Official figures say more than 1 million refugees have entered Russia, but we’re not feeling it,” Yelena Rusakova, a Moscow municipal deputy who volunteers to assist refugees, told…
-
Putin Targets ‘Unfriendly Countries’ in Counter Sanctions
Russian President Vladimir Putin banned Tuesday economic relations with sanctioned individuals from “unfriendly countries” on a soon to be published list. The move was a response to “unfriendly and contradictory to international law actions of the United States and foreign states and international organizations that joined it, which are aimed at illegally depriving and restricting…
-
Civilians Reach Safety as Russia Renews Assault on Mariupol Plant
Russian forces launched a major assault Tuesday on the Azovstal steel plant, the last holdout of Ukrainian forces in the devastated southern port city of Mariupol, as 101 civilians who had been trapped in the site for weeks were finally brought to safety. “We are so thankful for everyone who helped us. There was a…
-
U.S. Says Basketball Star ‘Wrongfully Detained’ in Russia
The United States said Tuesday that Russia has unjustly detained basketball star Brittney Griner, a finding that steps up efforts to free her more than two months after she was seized in Moscow. “The Department of State has determined that the Russian Federation has wrongfully detained U.S. citizen Brittney Griner,” a State Department spokesperson said.…
-
Émigré Russians Look to Victory Day as Weathervane for Return
Anti-war Russians who fled abroad in the wake of the invasion of Ukraine are looking to the upcoming annual celebrations of the Soviet Union’s victory over Nazi Germany on May 9 in order to gauge the viability of returning home. There has been much speculation that Russian President Vladimir Putin will use the occasion, which…
-
Putin Tells Macron West Must Stop Supplying Weapons to Ukraine
Russian President Vladimir Putin told French counterpart Emmanuel Macron Tuesday the West must stop supplying weapons to Ukraine and accused Kyiv of not taking talks to end the conflict seriously, the Kremlin said. Accusing Ukrainian forces of committing war crimes and claiming the EU was “ignoring” them, Putin told Macron “the West could help stop…
-
‘Cowards’: Russian Bank Founder Slams Oligarchs’ Silence on Ukraine War
The founder of one of Russia’s largest banks has condemned Russia’s business elite for refusing to speak out against Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine. Oleg Tinkov became one of the few influential Russian business owners to protest the war when he denounced the conflict as a “massacre” in an Instagram post on April 19. He later told…
-
Russia Relaunches Attack on Besieged Mariupol Steel Plant
Russian forces have relaunched their attack on Ukrainian fighters inside the Azovstal Iron and Steel Works in the besieged city of Mariupol. Troops began a fresh bombardment of the factory on Tuesday May 3 after accusing Ukrainian fighters of violating a ceasefire agreement. The Ukrainian military said that armoured vehicles and ground troops were also…
-
Russia Accuses Israel of Supporting ‘Neo-Nazis’ in Ukraine
Russia’s Foreign Ministry has accused the Israeli government of supporting a “neo-Nazi regime” in Ukraine. In a text published online Tuesday, officials accused Israeli Foreign Minister Yair Lapid of making “anti-historical statements” which “explained the course of the current Israeli government in supporting the neo-Nazi regime in Kyiv.” The statement comes after Lapid criticized his…
-
Fire Hits Russian Publisher Embroiled in Ukraine Textbook Controversy
Fire has ripped through a warehouse storing Russian schoolbooks, days after reports that publishers would remove mentions of Ukraine from the nation’s textbooks. Firefighters were called to a warehouse owned by the Prosveshchenie publishing house in Bogorodsky, east of Moscow, at 3 a.m. on Tuesday. The blaze was extinguished just over four hours later, a…
-
Russia’s Bolshoi Scraps Performances by Critical Directors
Russia’s Bolshoi Theater has announced it is canceling the performances directed by Kirill Serebrennikov and Timofey Kulyabin who have spoken out against Moscow’s military campaign in Ukraine. Late Sunday, Russia’s top theater announced that instead of the three performances of “Nureev,” a ballet directed by Serebrennikov, the audiences this week will see a production of…
-
Blast at Russian Military Explosives Plant Kills 2
Two workers were killed at an explosives factory in Russia’s Perm region 1,000 kilometers east of Moscow, local authorities said Monday. “There was a fire at around 20:00 on May 1 at the plastics production site in the Perm Power Plant federal state enterprise,” the regional labor watchdog said in a statement. One employee was…
-
Russian Pop Icon Feuds With RT Chief Editor Over Exiled Anti-War Star
Russian pop star Filipp Kirkorov has slammed the editor-in-chief of state-funded broadcaster RT for questioning the sexual orientation of his ex-wife’s current husband, Maxim Galkin, who fled Russia in protest of the war in Ukraine. Observers describe the latest feud between Kirkorov and RT editor-in-chief Margarita Simonyan as signs of cracks within the pro-Putin elite.…
-
ROSATOM statement on the Hanhikivi 1 NPP project
We are extremely disappointed that Fennovoima Oy has taken the decision to terminate its EPC contract with RAOS Project. We would like to highlight that the initiative from Fennovoima’s management to terminate the EPC contract – which is such a major step for the project – was taken without any detailed consultation with the project’s…
-
Russian Army General Gerasimov Visited East Ukraine Frontline – Reports
Russia’s Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces Valery Gerasimov paid an unusual visit to the frontline in Ukraine amid the Russian military’s slow progress to capture eastern territories, The New York Times reported Sunday. “Our working assumption is that he was there because there’s a recognition they haven’t worked out all their…
-
Israel Slams Russian Claims on Hitler Over Ukraine War
Israeli Foreign Minister Yair Lapid on Monday slammed his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov for alleging Adolf Hitler may have “had Jewish blood” and summoned the Russian ambassador for “clarifications.” Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on February 24, Israel has sought to keep a delicate balance between the two sides, but remarks by the Russian foreign…
-
Russian Bank Founder Says Kremlin Forced Sale of His Group Stake
U.K.-sanctioned Russian businessman Oleg Tinkov said the Kremlin had forced him to sell his stake in a major bank he had founded after he criticized the Ukraine war. Tinkov told The New York Times the Kremlin told the Tinkoff Bank’s senior executives to cut ties with him the day after his explosive April 19 Instagram…
Got any book recommendations?